Early access: Retronauts Episode 116

Oh man, I can definitely talk flea markets. Great idea.

Thanks!

And yes, Chucky Cheese pizza is still awful, vaguely reminiscent of cardboard.

Ironjoe99

I actually just went to a redemption arcade that was pretty decent. It was at Kalahari Waterpark and had a good selection of semi retro games, including a giant ticket producing Space Invaders! It had to be 10 feet tall and was filled with seizure inducing light effects. It was also unbelievably hard, and you usually ended up losing within under a minute. The price per play wasn’t great (roughly $1.00 per play). But you could win tickets! There was also a smaller Galaga that gave you an extra ship per card swipe. In theory, if you were willing to lay down about $10.00, you could have a bottom screen filling 10+ ships, all firing a single shot at a time. I think you’d still lose however. The actual prizes were hilariously expensive per ticket on the high end, something like 5,000 tickets for a board game. At best, if you’re a beast at a particular game, you could win 50-100 tickets per 1 dollar play. That would not be consistent though. Candy was redeemable at roughly 100-200 per item, so that’s not terrible? I think the biggest issue is 50 tickets per win is a lot to be carrying around. Chucky Cheese rarely nets you 10-20 per play, mostly 5 or so.

Ironjoe99

I've said it before, but I would love to hear an episode in this format about flea markets, and mom and pop video game shops as they existed prior to the gamestop era. I know thats where I used to scour for old games. P.S. It's good to hear listener letters in the episodes as well.

Robert Negoesco

I feel like the Retronauts East are getting better as Ben and Benj find their voice as they do more episodes. I also enjoyed the structure of this episode, I love when you guys do research on topics, but it's also cool to hear the conversation flow more naturally with stream of consciousness.

Robert Negoesco

Loved the music choices in this one; the Elevator Action II OST is so good

This Town Is Doomed, LLC

I went to many a birthday party at Crabtree's Aladdin's Castle in the early 90s. Very cool to hear it get a mention on the podcast. Until recently, I still had a few coin and ticket holder fanny packs from that arcade.

Scott Scallion

Hey guys. Just saw this on HARO: Summary: What's driving the boom in RETRO GAMING? Name: Daniel Bukszpan CNBC.com Category: Entertainment and Media Email: query-76nz@helpareporter.net Media Outlet: CNBC.com Deadline: 9:00 AM EST - 6 September Query: People who play video games have never had it so good, with technology bringing them gaming experiences once thought impossible. So why are they so excited for the new Atari and Sega Genesis consoles coming out this fall? Why is retro gaming so hot? Who's playing these old games? Is it Gen X parents bonding with their kids over games from the 80s and 90s? And which retro games are most popular? What place do these simple, nostalgic games have for gamers in the Call of Duty age?

I like the idea of focusing on recollections; on many episodes it seems like that's where the Retronauts East crew has wanted to go anyway, and it lets rambling and reminiscing be on-topic.

Mike Wasson